The head of Google's audacious self-driving car project told an audience of auto industry executives Tuesday that his company will need expert partners to pull off its vision of 100-percent self-driving cars.

CEO John Krafcik, a former executive with Ford Motor and Hyundai Motor, made clear that Google is not aiming to put his friends in the industry out of business. "We understand well. No one goes this alone. We are going to need a lot of help. For this next stage of our development, we’ll have more partnerships," he said. With a sly smile, he added, "You can count on it, but I have nothing to say today."

Media reports in recent weeks suggested that Google and Ford would announce a major tie-up during the auto show, but neither company had anything to say about the rumors.

Krafcik, during a speech at Automotive News' World Congress, said, "No one knows how this will pan out, but I know these three things to be true about self-driving cars. We must build them for everybody, young or old, disabled or not, licensed or not. Everyone deserves access to this technology."

"Two, the magic leap of technology has already been made. It’s not science fiction any more. It’s here."

And finally, he said, "It takes many partners. No one can do it alone."

Noting that Google already partnered with numerous automotive suppliers to build its current test fleet of self-driving, bubble-shaped cars, Krafcik said, "we're thinking about all sorts of things. It’s a super exciting time. There are a ton of ways we can cooperate, and partner together. Have we thought of everything? No. Absolutely not," he said.